OK, he went out for a round of golf on Saturday afternoon.
OS is no fan of this guy, and sincerely hope the electorate will send him on his way about eighteen month from now.
But, please...
Gadafi is going to slaughter his citizens, whether WinnerOfTheNobelPeacePrize is in the situation room watching it unfold live or not. That North African despot been at it for decades now, by the way, and has gotten really good at it. The fleet's in the Med, and the admiral has his orders. For today, that is what anyone can do.
Maybe, even Himself (and we) might benefit from four hours outside, with little to think about except advancing that little white ball toward the little hole.
OS has a gentle suggestion for all those who are apoplectic about Himself hitting the links: Take up the game yourself, and allow yourself the relief and joy of walking the golf course. The world really will be there when you head home, probably not much deteriorated from when you teed off, and you'll likely be in better shape to address your corner of it.
Just sayin'...
Saturday, March 5, 2011
£100,000,000 In Lybian Currency Seized In British Waters By UK Customs
...to add to the £900,000,000 impounded before it could be shipped to Gadafi.
Score one for our cousins in the UK. Mercenaries from tribes in Chad don't take checks...
This is, and will be, a bloody and confusing mess for a long long time.
Half of Libya's oil production capacity was knocked out Friday.
Score one for our cousins in the UK. Mercenaries from tribes in Chad don't take checks...
This is, and will be, a bloody and confusing mess for a long long time.
Half of Libya's oil production capacity was knocked out Friday.
Meanwhile, Back In Tehran...
...and the popular uprising Obama wishes would Just. Go. DaBlank. Away.
('Cuz he's got no skin in that game!)
March 3, 2011 RoozOnline – Fakhrosadat Mohtashamipour, a member of the the Participation Front and wife of Mostafa Tajzadeh [incarcerated adviser to opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi] was arrested during the March 1st, 2011 demonstrations and is now currently behind bars at the IRGC Ward 2A at Evin prison. Her family has been informed that she will remain incommunicado while under interrogation.
Mohtashamipour’s arrest took place as a result of increased pressures leading from letters she published over the past 20 months, protesting the unjust incarceration of her husband Mostafa Tajzadeh. Recent reports indicate that although Tajzadeh’s health has deteriorated and he is still being held at the Quarantine Ward. Based on their last visitation with him, his family has become gravely concerned for his well-being.
('Cuz he's got no skin in that game!)
March 3, 2011 RoozOnline – Fakhrosadat Mohtashamipour, a member of the the Participation Front and wife of Mostafa Tajzadeh [incarcerated adviser to opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi] was arrested during the March 1st, 2011 demonstrations and is now currently behind bars at the IRGC Ward 2A at Evin prison. Her family has been informed that she will remain incommunicado while under interrogation.
Mohtashamipour’s arrest took place as a result of increased pressures leading from letters she published over the past 20 months, protesting the unjust incarceration of her husband Mostafa Tajzadeh. Recent reports indicate that although Tajzadeh’s health has deteriorated and he is still being held at the Quarantine Ward. Based on their last visitation with him, his family has become gravely concerned for his well-being.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Sense of Events: Obama is neither Kenyan nor Hawaiian
Sense of Events: Obama is neither Kenyan nor Hawaiian
Donald Sensing is dead on target, answering the final question of OS's previous post.
Donald Sensing is dead on target, answering the final question of OS's previous post.
The Libyan Civil War: Gadafi's Mercenaries Being Trucked In From Mali
The BBC reports large numbers of trained, equipped, and very well-paid (thus highly-motivated) mercenaries are being trucked in from Mali, over the southern border of Libya.
Members of the Tuareg community in Mali say a large number of men from the Tuareg ethnic group have left Mali in the last week to join pro-Gaddafi forces in Libya.
"About 2-300 have left in the last seven days," said a senior elected official, who did not want to be named, from the Kidal region in the north of the country, where many Tuareg live.
Another Tuareg man from Kidal said: "It's true many young men are leaving. It all started about a week back."
He said he had spoken to a convoy of 40 vehicles who are in southern Algeria waiting to cross the border into Libya.
The elected official said: "They are being paid about $10,000 (£6,000) to join up and then I've heard they are being told that they will get $1,000 a day to fight."
Much more, and much more chilling, to be read at the link.
Gadafi has decided to stand and fight it out. All he has to do is:
1. Not get killed or injured.
2. Inflict massive bloodshed and chaos, thus wearing down any who might oppose him.
3. Hunker down, and not lose for a year.
4. Spike oil prices ToTheMoonAlice.
5. Export some chaos while he's at it, just to keep the West busy.
He saw what has happened in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is not stupid, just evil.
He knows that, even if we had the resources to launch some sort of massive military initiative (which the US, UK and NATO together now lack), there is no willingness to undertake it. No sane US politician is going to risk the life of a boy from Topeka to guard the border between Libya and Mali, attempting to stem the flow of fighters and arms.
Not. Gonna. Happen.
If we had our own domestic sources of oil, gas, coal, and nuclear, and thus impervious to the crazies who run oil-exporting countries, we would save countless lives around the world. If the Gadafis and Chavezes and Iranian kooks can't hold the world hostage, the world settles down. Lybia, Venezuela and Iran may still be terrible places, but the misery is localized, not an item for export.
Of course, we have a President who steadfastly is ignoring a federal court order to allow drilling to resume, and who will not will not will not allow this country to do the simple things necessary to secure its energy needs domestically.
Do we ever ponder why he seems to embrace chaos and poverty, when a path to prosperity and order is obvious?
Members of the Tuareg community in Mali say a large number of men from the Tuareg ethnic group have left Mali in the last week to join pro-Gaddafi forces in Libya.
"About 2-300 have left in the last seven days," said a senior elected official, who did not want to be named, from the Kidal region in the north of the country, where many Tuareg live.
Another Tuareg man from Kidal said: "It's true many young men are leaving. It all started about a week back."
He said he had spoken to a convoy of 40 vehicles who are in southern Algeria waiting to cross the border into Libya.
The elected official said: "They are being paid about $10,000 (£6,000) to join up and then I've heard they are being told that they will get $1,000 a day to fight."
Much more, and much more chilling, to be read at the link.
Gadafi has decided to stand and fight it out. All he has to do is:
1. Not get killed or injured.
2. Inflict massive bloodshed and chaos, thus wearing down any who might oppose him.
3. Hunker down, and not lose for a year.
4. Spike oil prices ToTheMoonAlice.
5. Export some chaos while he's at it, just to keep the West busy.
He saw what has happened in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is not stupid, just evil.
He knows that, even if we had the resources to launch some sort of massive military initiative (which the US, UK and NATO together now lack), there is no willingness to undertake it. No sane US politician is going to risk the life of a boy from Topeka to guard the border between Libya and Mali, attempting to stem the flow of fighters and arms.
Not. Gonna. Happen.
If we had our own domestic sources of oil, gas, coal, and nuclear, and thus impervious to the crazies who run oil-exporting countries, we would save countless lives around the world. If the Gadafis and Chavezes and Iranian kooks can't hold the world hostage, the world settles down. Lybia, Venezuela and Iran may still be terrible places, but the misery is localized, not an item for export.
Of course, we have a President who steadfastly is ignoring a federal court order to allow drilling to resume, and who will not will not will not allow this country to do the simple things necessary to secure its energy needs domestically.
Do we ever ponder why he seems to embrace chaos and poverty, when a path to prosperity and order is obvious?
In Memoriam: Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistani Christian
If anyone, anywhere in the West thinks it's not a problem for Sharia law to take hold in a culture, OS suggest they view the BBC's account of this gentleman's funeral.
Thousands of Pakistani mourners have attended the funeral of murdered minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti.
Mr Bhatti, a Christian, was shot dead on Wednesday by the Taliban after he urged reform to blasphemy laws.
There were emotional scenes as several thousand Christians buried their leader in his home village near Faisalabad.
Earlier, hundreds turned out for a church service in the capital. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani told them his colleague had been "very rare".
Wednesday's assassination in Islamabad was the second this year of a Pakistani politician who wanted to reform the controversial blasphemy laws.
The article includes a brief video, prepared by Mr. Bhatti four months ago. He knew the likelihood of death by assassination was very high, and he was effectively resigned to it. It is a moving two minutes.
A correspondent at the funeral reports:
Bishop of Faisalabad Joseph Coutts told those present that the blasphemy laws - which Mr Bhatti wanted to reform - were being misused to persecute minorities.
Referring to those who would glorify the minister's murderers, he said: "We don't want to worship a God who rewards killers."
OS, as a child, would privately chuckle when missionary hymns such as 'We've A Story To Tell To The Nations' were belted out in church. He was wrong to do that. Those old hymn writers said things that arrogant boy, in his comfortable surroundings, did not wish to hear.
Where the Christian gospel is allowed to take root, freedom flourishes, and there is hope for the culture. Islam breeds violence, poverty and despair. Socialism breeds violence, poverty and despair. To refuse to speak the simple truth, in the interests of a pretense of civility, is to stand by while millions fall victim to the violence, poverty, and despair.
Shahbaz Bhatti was a Christian, a faithful devoted follower of Christ, who advocated for freedom and against violence. He is now a martyr, and an example to us all.
Thousands of Pakistani mourners have attended the funeral of murdered minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti.
Mr Bhatti, a Christian, was shot dead on Wednesday by the Taliban after he urged reform to blasphemy laws.
There were emotional scenes as several thousand Christians buried their leader in his home village near Faisalabad.
Earlier, hundreds turned out for a church service in the capital. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani told them his colleague had been "very rare".
Wednesday's assassination in Islamabad was the second this year of a Pakistani politician who wanted to reform the controversial blasphemy laws.
The article includes a brief video, prepared by Mr. Bhatti four months ago. He knew the likelihood of death by assassination was very high, and he was effectively resigned to it. It is a moving two minutes.
A correspondent at the funeral reports:
Bishop of Faisalabad Joseph Coutts told those present that the blasphemy laws - which Mr Bhatti wanted to reform - were being misused to persecute minorities.
Referring to those who would glorify the minister's murderers, he said: "We don't want to worship a God who rewards killers."
OS, as a child, would privately chuckle when missionary hymns such as 'We've A Story To Tell To The Nations' were belted out in church. He was wrong to do that. Those old hymn writers said things that arrogant boy, in his comfortable surroundings, did not wish to hear.
Where the Christian gospel is allowed to take root, freedom flourishes, and there is hope for the culture. Islam breeds violence, poverty and despair. Socialism breeds violence, poverty and despair. To refuse to speak the simple truth, in the interests of a pretense of civility, is to stand by while millions fall victim to the violence, poverty, and despair.
Shahbaz Bhatti was a Christian, a faithful devoted follower of Christ, who advocated for freedom and against violence. He is now a martyr, and an example to us all.
Just Because It's Friday: Psalm 84
In celebration of the 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible, one of the truly soaring moments of the English language: Psalm 84.
1 How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.
3 Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.
4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.
6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
7 They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.
9 Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.
10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
12 O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.
And, the most famous musical setting of these words, by Johannes Brahms:
1 How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.
3 Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.
4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.
6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
7 They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.
9 Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.
10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
12 O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.
And, the most famous musical setting of these words, by Johannes Brahms:
What The NEA Leadership Tells The NEA Rank-And-File
It's or interesting to see what the leadership of an organization, any organization, says to the rank-and-file. Everybody does it--churches, businesses, organizations like NRA, or...labor unions. OS thinks the folks who turn out this copy, day after day, lull themselves into thinking they are holding a private conversation. They forget that, when they hit than 'Print' of 'Send' button, it actually means 'Publish'.
The following is a sample from today's 'NEA Today' email, which arrives every morning in OS's mailbox. OS, as a public service, shares them with you...with explanatory notes included.
A proclamation by President Obama declared today Read Across America Day, NEA President Dennis Van Roekel told the event’s crowd of students decked in “Cat in the Hat” stovepipe hats.“Today, there are 45 million people doing what we’re doing: wearing funny hats and reading!” he said.
You really must must must hit the link to see The First Lady in front of a crowd of Cats-In-Hats. Words fail. Not even Dr. Suess is equal to this occasion.
Day-in, day-out, year-in, year-out, the copywriters grind the verbiage out. Little wonder they, and their audiences, come to assume that they have a true and unique grip on reality, sharing a unique knowledge with a private audience.
Little wonder we witness the protests in Madison and Providence.
As he types out his thoughts, to be launched in a blog-bottle onto the sea of the internet, OS is watching Waiting For Superman, currently available on DirectTV Pay-Per-View movie service. It is staggering to watch, dismaying to view. The segment showing the lotteries for spaces in the good schools is agonizing to view.
The 4.99 spent keeps the movie going for twenty-four hours, and OS will be viewing it again.
The NEA loathes it, preaches against it, vilifies it at every turn. Little wonder. Prophetically, some of the most damning anecdotes are told about Madison, Wisconsin.
The following is a sample from today's 'NEA Today' email, which arrives every morning in OS's mailbox. OS, as a public service, shares them with you...with explanatory notes included.
- Ohio Senate Passes Collective Bargaining Overhaul (Those Wascawy Wepubwikans,Winning That Election Without Our Permission)
- Public Adamantly Opposed to Cuts in K-12 Education, Social Security (Sit tight! We've got those conservatives cornered!)
- NEA Kicks Off Read Across America Day
A proclamation by President Obama declared today Read Across America Day, NEA President Dennis Van Roekel told the event’s crowd of students decked in “Cat in the Hat” stovepipe hats.“Today, there are 45 million people doing what we’re doing: wearing funny hats and reading!” he said.
You really must must must hit the link to see The First Lady in front of a crowd of Cats-In-Hats. Words fail. Not even Dr. Suess is equal to this occasion.
- Wisconsin Governor is Waging ‘Jihad’ Against Unions (Beheadings? Honor Killings?)
- What You Need to Know About State Pensions (It's all the fault of greedy legislators and the housing meltdown. Stand fast, brethren, we'll get every penny. There is no real crisis...)
- House of Representatives Slashes Education for Low-Income Kids (Those Wascawy Wepubwikans, With Their Dwaconian Cuts!)
Day-in, day-out, year-in, year-out, the copywriters grind the verbiage out. Little wonder they, and their audiences, come to assume that they have a true and unique grip on reality, sharing a unique knowledge with a private audience.
Little wonder we witness the protests in Madison and Providence.
As he types out his thoughts, to be launched in a blog-bottle onto the sea of the internet, OS is watching Waiting For Superman, currently available on DirectTV Pay-Per-View movie service. It is staggering to watch, dismaying to view. The segment showing the lotteries for spaces in the good schools is agonizing to view.
The 4.99 spent keeps the movie going for twenty-four hours, and OS will be viewing it again.
The NEA loathes it, preaches against it, vilifies it at every turn. Little wonder. Prophetically, some of the most damning anecdotes are told about Madison, Wisconsin.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Teacher Protests--Providence Rhode Island
Facing huge deficits in a small city, the mayor took radical action: He fired every teacher in the system, and will rehire in line with what the city will be able to afford.
Understandably, a lot of folks are upset.
From today's NPR Morning Edition:
About 1,500 people jammed the street in front of City Hall in Providence, R.I., on Wednesday to protest last week's dismissal of the city's entire teaching force.
"I thought the only insanity was in Wisconsin, not in Rhode Island," Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, told the crowd, which raised signs and banged drums.
Weingarten calls the terminations insane, but city officials say they had no choice: The city is facing an estimated deficit of more than $100 million for the next fiscal year, or roughly 20 percent of the city budget.
Providence's new mayor, Angel Taveras, says he is considering school closures and layoffs for many city workers, but teachers are feeling the pain first, because of a state law that requires districts to notify teachers by March 1 if their jobs are in jeopardy. He says he chose terminations instead of layoffs, because it ensures that teachers the city can't afford will be completely removed from the city payroll.
"With a layoff, for various reasons, you can be responsible for paying teachers who are not teaching in a classroom," he said. "In addition to that, if they go into the substitute pool, you're paying them their full pay and benefits, and that's costing an enormous amount of money. I can't allow the taxpayers to be on the hook for paying teachers who are not teaching."
OS observes, for what it's worth: The union members, and many normal folks, honestly do not believe there is a real problem, that the states and municipalities are not strapped. 2007/2008 is beginning to fade from memory, and Da Stimulus (which ballooned the federal deficit dramatically) helicoptered money to the school systems, and lulled everyone into thinking that there wasn't a real problem.
In frustration, and in an effort to shock everyone out of their sleepy denial, elected officials take actions like this. What they don't calculate is the tendency of this sort of route to poison the well with people whose future high morale is desirable--teachers, police, firefighters, road crews, etc. After the crisis, those that remain will either come to work feeling like they are part of a greater good, or arrive with an even more entrenched us-vs-them chip on the shoulder. They'll either give that little extra bit of effort for the home team, or resentfully go through the motions--doing just enough to avoid termination for cause, and creating chaos daily. OS has seen this in action, and it is a miserable thing to deal with.
There's a lot of the latter attitude already baked into the culture of many states and municipalitles, to be certain. And, given the human condition, it won't ever completely go away.
But it seems that the art of leadership entails the ability to deliver bad news, and make ugly ugly decisions without pouring excess gasoline onto the fires of resentment.
This is going to be an ugly ugly period, 'cuz the money has run out. Doesn't mean we have to draw knives on one another. That only delays the day when we are prosperous enough to not wring our hands over every budget.
This story from Business Insider gives a picture of the cultural quandry:
Understandably, a lot of folks are upset.
From today's NPR Morning Edition:
About 1,500 people jammed the street in front of City Hall in Providence, R.I., on Wednesday to protest last week's dismissal of the city's entire teaching force.
"I thought the only insanity was in Wisconsin, not in Rhode Island," Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, told the crowd, which raised signs and banged drums.
Weingarten calls the terminations insane, but city officials say they had no choice: The city is facing an estimated deficit of more than $100 million for the next fiscal year, or roughly 20 percent of the city budget.
Providence's new mayor, Angel Taveras, says he is considering school closures and layoffs for many city workers, but teachers are feeling the pain first, because of a state law that requires districts to notify teachers by March 1 if their jobs are in jeopardy. He says he chose terminations instead of layoffs, because it ensures that teachers the city can't afford will be completely removed from the city payroll.
"With a layoff, for various reasons, you can be responsible for paying teachers who are not teaching in a classroom," he said. "In addition to that, if they go into the substitute pool, you're paying them their full pay and benefits, and that's costing an enormous amount of money. I can't allow the taxpayers to be on the hook for paying teachers who are not teaching."
OS observes, for what it's worth: The union members, and many normal folks, honestly do not believe there is a real problem, that the states and municipalities are not strapped. 2007/2008 is beginning to fade from memory, and Da Stimulus (which ballooned the federal deficit dramatically) helicoptered money to the school systems, and lulled everyone into thinking that there wasn't a real problem.
In frustration, and in an effort to shock everyone out of their sleepy denial, elected officials take actions like this. What they don't calculate is the tendency of this sort of route to poison the well with people whose future high morale is desirable--teachers, police, firefighters, road crews, etc. After the crisis, those that remain will either come to work feeling like they are part of a greater good, or arrive with an even more entrenched us-vs-them chip on the shoulder. They'll either give that little extra bit of effort for the home team, or resentfully go through the motions--doing just enough to avoid termination for cause, and creating chaos daily. OS has seen this in action, and it is a miserable thing to deal with.
There's a lot of the latter attitude already baked into the culture of many states and municipalitles, to be certain. And, given the human condition, it won't ever completely go away.
But it seems that the art of leadership entails the ability to deliver bad news, and make ugly ugly decisions without pouring excess gasoline onto the fires of resentment.
This is going to be an ugly ugly period, 'cuz the money has run out. Doesn't mean we have to draw knives on one another. That only delays the day when we are prosperous enough to not wring our hands over every budget.
This story from Business Insider gives a picture of the cultural quandry:
James Levine To Step Down From Boston Symphony Role
It's the right decision, although it is unfortunate to see it happen this way.
James Levine, dogged by a relentless series of health problems, said on Wednesday that he would resign as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, concluding that he could no longer handle the job along with his duties in the same post at the Metropolitan Opera in New York.
Here's hoping he can take the time to get his health back, and be in fit shape for the Met. Levine is an absolute genius in the opera pit, which is a very specialized craft.
Imagine keeping 80 musicians, 40 chorus members, 5-10 lead singing artists, and assorted horses, props, costumers, etc., all on the same wavelength, standing in a big hole in the floor, looking up at a deep deep stage, with musicians 50 feet on each side of you. Do it live, in Italian, French, or German, in front of the world. You're spending many thousands of dollars a minute every rehearsal or performance. And do it beautifully time after time. Stand for three hours and keep your arms held aloft while you do it. Hundreds of times year, for over forty years.
That's the job, and it is hard on the body and brain. And someone, somewhere in the process, is always unhappy with you about something. And, by the way, you have to direct planning for the season five years out.
OS has two wonderful friends who are devotees of the opera, and they always say, 'The musicians always play better for Jimmy.' And it's true--on those broadcasts when Levine is in the pit, the whole event just stands up and walks--everyone finds their 'A' game, and he brings it out in them.
Here's a salute in his direction, and best wishes for his healthy future.
James Levine, dogged by a relentless series of health problems, said on Wednesday that he would resign as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, concluding that he could no longer handle the job along with his duties in the same post at the Metropolitan Opera in New York.
Here's hoping he can take the time to get his health back, and be in fit shape for the Met. Levine is an absolute genius in the opera pit, which is a very specialized craft.
Imagine keeping 80 musicians, 40 chorus members, 5-10 lead singing artists, and assorted horses, props, costumers, etc., all on the same wavelength, standing in a big hole in the floor, looking up at a deep deep stage, with musicians 50 feet on each side of you. Do it live, in Italian, French, or German, in front of the world. You're spending many thousands of dollars a minute every rehearsal or performance. And do it beautifully time after time. Stand for three hours and keep your arms held aloft while you do it. Hundreds of times year, for over forty years.
That's the job, and it is hard on the body and brain. And someone, somewhere in the process, is always unhappy with you about something. And, by the way, you have to direct planning for the season five years out.
OS has two wonderful friends who are devotees of the opera, and they always say, 'The musicians always play better for Jimmy.' And it's true--on those broadcasts when Levine is in the pit, the whole event just stands up and walks--everyone finds their 'A' game, and he brings it out in them.
Here's a salute in his direction, and best wishes for his healthy future.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Bob McTeer's Remarks To Rotary 2 March 2010
OS believes in reading a wide variety of views, since he has the same bad habit as everyone else: Reading stuff that always reinforces what one already believes.
Bob McTeer is an essentially sober soul, with an impressive resume.
He takes the view that TARP, the extraordinary Fed actions, etc., were necessary and did avert a worse disaster. And, that the current course of governmental spending is unsustainable.
There's a lot left unsaid here, that OS wishes would be said, especially about the moral hazard baked into the culture--'If I'm a really big player, I can be reckless, 'cuz help is always on the way.' Think AIG...
But, still, perhaps his little piece of turf is something everyone could stand on while they work out the painful details of WhatHappensNext.
Bob McTeer is an essentially sober soul, with an impressive resume.
He takes the view that TARP, the extraordinary Fed actions, etc., were necessary and did avert a worse disaster. And, that the current course of governmental spending is unsustainable.
There's a lot left unsaid here, that OS wishes would be said, especially about the moral hazard baked into the culture--'If I'm a really big player, I can be reckless, 'cuz help is always on the way.' Think AIG...
But, still, perhaps his little piece of turf is something everyone could stand on while they work out the painful details of WhatHappensNext.
France24 LiveBlog Feed From Libya
What appears to be developing is a full-blown civil war.
As much as OS's old heart aches for them all, he hopes the US has better sense than to commit any sort of ground forces to the fray. We have this terrible habit of stepping in, and finding ourselves still there some twenty years later, resented by all sides.
Humanitarian aid to succor the suffering? Certainly, in the great American tradition.
Choosing sides in a civil war? Never a good idea. It is impossible to have the wisdom to know with whom to side, especially in a culture so removed from our assumptions.
We're better off, OS drones on again, drilling-developing-consuming-selling our own oil, gas, coal and nuclear. It would save countless lives around the world, much more inexpensively than flying plane-loads of Marines into the next civil war in some tragically failed oil-exporting part of the world.
As much as OS's old heart aches for them all, he hopes the US has better sense than to commit any sort of ground forces to the fray. We have this terrible habit of stepping in, and finding ourselves still there some twenty years later, resented by all sides.
Humanitarian aid to succor the suffering? Certainly, in the great American tradition.
Choosing sides in a civil war? Never a good idea. It is impossible to have the wisdom to know with whom to side, especially in a culture so removed from our assumptions.
We're better off, OS drones on again, drilling-developing-consuming-selling our own oil, gas, coal and nuclear. It would save countless lives around the world, much more inexpensively than flying plane-loads of Marines into the next civil war in some tragically failed oil-exporting part of the world.
Rule #34 Of Modern Warfare: If You Wanna Get The Upper Hand, Create Masses of Refugees
Who fill the roads, and arrive to the borders (and eventual refugee camps) destitute, exhausted, famished, and at their wit's end. The other side gets to feed, house, treat, transport them--just to get to be able to get back to the business of advancing on your positions.
Then begin the meme that it's all the other side's fault anyway, and look how shabbily those poor people are being treated...
Unfortunately, it works. Think Europe in the 40's. Korea. Cambodia. Viet Nam and its Boat People. The Marielitos. The latest war in the Balkans. Palestine.
It works like a charm. Every time.
Here's hoping the world gets these poor folks out of the line of fire, and as many of them from overseas home as quickly as possible.
And, that in the aftermath, some sane people can sort Libya out. This is tragic, no other word will do.
This further from the BBC.
Then begin the meme that it's all the other side's fault anyway, and look how shabbily those poor people are being treated...
Unfortunately, it works. Think Europe in the 40's. Korea. Cambodia. Viet Nam and its Boat People. The Marielitos. The latest war in the Balkans. Palestine.
It works like a charm. Every time.
Here's hoping the world gets these poor folks out of the line of fire, and as many of them from overseas home as quickly as possible.
And, that in the aftermath, some sane people can sort Libya out. This is tragic, no other word will do.
This further from the BBC.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Perhaps Some Movement In The Wisconsin 14 Standoff
Eventually, the fun of playing hooky wears off.
Fox Nation has learned exclusively from a highly placed source within Wisconsin state politics that the fourteen AWOL Democrats are experiencing "dissension in the ranks." State Sen. Julie Lassa (D) is pregnant and "extremely unhappy" about being on the run. State Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D) has been hit particularly hard by his paycheck being withheld. Wisconsin State Senate leadership is currently negotiating with eight of the fourteen to come home. Gov. Scott Walker (R) has declared today the deadline for action on his budget repair bill and plans to give a budget address at 5 p.m. ET. A deal may be announced around that time.
Here's hoping. The good thing about the sit-ins, rallies, endless debates, etc. in Madison is that no one, anywhere can claim that dissenting voices were not given the opportunity to be heard. The teargas and truncheons were never used on the protesters,(not to mention mounted camel attacks) and great patience was shown when they actually moved in and camped out in the capitol rotunda. The Dems covered themselves in mud with their cursing, littering, pictures of the Governor as der Fuhrer, etc., and with the outright threatening language used by one Dem Assemblyman on a GOP Assemblywoman.
It looks like the Wisconsin Assembly has its very own Charlie Sheen. State Rep. Gordon Hintz, the Democrat bad boy of Wisconsin, earned his stripes by getting arrested in connection to a prostitution sting and then grandstanding on the Assembly floor.
620 WTMJ: Last Friday.... after the Assembly voted to engross the Budget Repair Bill, Hintz turned to a female colleague, Rep. Michelle Litjens and said: "You are F***king dead!"
Hope-n-Change, ya'll!
Hintz later admitted to it, and issued an apology, expressing his chagrin that he had been overheard issuing the threat. Ya'll, is it just me, or does that sound like the sort of language the Mob uses? Unions, Mafia, Mafia, Unions...they have been known to keep company from time to time. Hmm...impossible to say from here, just listening to a conversation from a distance.
In any case, after everyone got a chance to let off steam, and express their dismay that life has irrevocably changed, the math is the math is the math is the math. Including the math that says that Wisconsin elected a GOP governor, and large GOP majorities in each house. In future elections, that math may change, and perhaps the unions can reassert their mojo. But for now, math is math. Wisconsin is broke, and must slash spending, beginning with its overwhelming payroll costs.
Here's hoping...
Fox Nation has learned exclusively from a highly placed source within Wisconsin state politics that the fourteen AWOL Democrats are experiencing "dissension in the ranks." State Sen. Julie Lassa (D) is pregnant and "extremely unhappy" about being on the run. State Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D) has been hit particularly hard by his paycheck being withheld. Wisconsin State Senate leadership is currently negotiating with eight of the fourteen to come home. Gov. Scott Walker (R) has declared today the deadline for action on his budget repair bill and plans to give a budget address at 5 p.m. ET. A deal may be announced around that time.
Here's hoping. The good thing about the sit-ins, rallies, endless debates, etc. in Madison is that no one, anywhere can claim that dissenting voices were not given the opportunity to be heard. The teargas and truncheons were never used on the protesters,(not to mention mounted camel attacks) and great patience was shown when they actually moved in and camped out in the capitol rotunda. The Dems covered themselves in mud with their cursing, littering, pictures of the Governor as der Fuhrer, etc., and with the outright threatening language used by one Dem Assemblyman on a GOP Assemblywoman.
It looks like the Wisconsin Assembly has its very own Charlie Sheen. State Rep. Gordon Hintz, the Democrat bad boy of Wisconsin, earned his stripes by getting arrested in connection to a prostitution sting and then grandstanding on the Assembly floor.
620 WTMJ: Last Friday.... after the Assembly voted to engross the Budget Repair Bill, Hintz turned to a female colleague, Rep. Michelle Litjens and said: "You are F***king dead!"
Hope-n-Change, ya'll!
Hintz later admitted to it, and issued an apology, expressing his chagrin that he had been overheard issuing the threat. Ya'll, is it just me, or does that sound like the sort of language the Mob uses? Unions, Mafia, Mafia, Unions...they have been known to keep company from time to time. Hmm...impossible to say from here, just listening to a conversation from a distance.
In any case, after everyone got a chance to let off steam, and express their dismay that life has irrevocably changed, the math is the math is the math is the math. Including the math that says that Wisconsin elected a GOP governor, and large GOP majorities in each house. In future elections, that math may change, and perhaps the unions can reassert their mojo. But for now, math is math. Wisconsin is broke, and must slash spending, beginning with its overwhelming payroll costs.
Here's hoping...
Small-Town Tennessee: A View From The Ground, Late February
Saturday was lovely, and Mr. and Mrs. OS took the occasion to browse around our little town. Brunch at the diner, a bit of shopping, low-key. It is a blessing to live here.
There is a recovery of sorts underway here, evidenced by the fact that some young families are moving in, and back from other places, to raise their kids and start small businesses. The state, and this region in particular, has been a de facto plantation of the Democrat Party since the end of Reconstruction, which grip was finally broken last November. Elections matter, if for no other reason than the change of attitude that can flow from them.
The young restaurant owner offered a cogent observation--People have less money, so they will spend carefully, on good quality purchases. Perhaps the WalMart-fueled Race To The Bottom is about to end. The small gift shops and antique stores had some trade, although there are still empty storefronts aplenty. Again, good merch at good prices, very carefully purchased seems to be the rule. No one's blowing money, and no one's getting rich. But there is some optimism in the air.
On the other hand, the price of fuel and groceries is really beginning to hit hard on everyone. The hard winter clobbered the fruit and veg growers, more than tripling the price of tomatoes for the restaurant, for instance. Add to that the spike in diesel fuel, grains, etc. The latest pound of butter purchased was nearly twice the price of six months previous. Pet food prices are spiking. Clothing prices are expected to follow. The local men's store has beautiful stuff, but is holding modest inventories only.
The local athletic club parking lot was full yesterday afternoon, and the golf club has had a steady trade. Truck traffic is up on nearby I-40. A buddy who is a building contractor has booked four houses to build, after a frightening two years. He is relieved, to say the least.
Again, it is such a blessing to live here. Here's hoping the good trends continue.
There is a recovery of sorts underway here, evidenced by the fact that some young families are moving in, and back from other places, to raise their kids and start small businesses. The state, and this region in particular, has been a de facto plantation of the Democrat Party since the end of Reconstruction, which grip was finally broken last November. Elections matter, if for no other reason than the change of attitude that can flow from them.
The young restaurant owner offered a cogent observation--People have less money, so they will spend carefully, on good quality purchases. Perhaps the WalMart-fueled Race To The Bottom is about to end. The small gift shops and antique stores had some trade, although there are still empty storefronts aplenty. Again, good merch at good prices, very carefully purchased seems to be the rule. No one's blowing money, and no one's getting rich. But there is some optimism in the air.
On the other hand, the price of fuel and groceries is really beginning to hit hard on everyone. The hard winter clobbered the fruit and veg growers, more than tripling the price of tomatoes for the restaurant, for instance. Add to that the spike in diesel fuel, grains, etc. The latest pound of butter purchased was nearly twice the price of six months previous. Pet food prices are spiking. Clothing prices are expected to follow. The local men's store has beautiful stuff, but is holding modest inventories only.
The local athletic club parking lot was full yesterday afternoon, and the golf club has had a steady trade. Truck traffic is up on nearby I-40. A buddy who is a building contractor has booked four houses to build, after a frightening two years. He is relieved, to say the least.
Again, it is such a blessing to live here. Here's hoping the good trends continue.
Afternoon Tea With The Colonel: Christiane Amanpour In The Twilight Zone
Really, he sez. They all love me. Everything's fine.
It's Belshazzar at the feast, Der Fuhrer in the Berlin Bunker, ordering non-existent divisions to battle the Russian hordes, Mubarak on the TV declaring how his people love him and that he will never leave, on and on and on. The longer and more repressive the term in power, the more complete the break with reality.
'Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad.'--Euripides.
It's Belshazzar at the feast, Der Fuhrer in the Berlin Bunker, ordering non-existent divisions to battle the Russian hordes, Mubarak on the TV declaring how his people love him and that he will never leave, on and on and on. The longer and more repressive the term in power, the more complete the break with reality.
'Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad.'--Euripides.
I Zenga-Zenga, You Zenga-Zenga: Sometimes Only Laughter Will Do
People under his thumb have died like flies for some forty years, so this guy is not funny.
But he does deserve ridicule, before being hunted down and eliminated. Maybe, instead of a Gulftream Moment, he'll get his Mussolini Moment.
In the meantime, the viral video hit of North Africa and the Middle East.
javascript:void(0)
But he does deserve ridicule, before being hunted down and eliminated. Maybe, instead of a Gulftream Moment, he'll get his Mussolini Moment.
In the meantime, the viral video hit of North Africa and the Middle East.
javascript:void(0)
To Miss With Love Hits The Stores Today In The UK
To Miss With Love is on first-day sale today.
OS sends long-distance best wishes Ms. Birbalsingh's direction.
Here's hoping her book makes into many hands and hearts and minds, on both sides of the pond.
OS sends long-distance best wishes Ms. Birbalsingh's direction.
Here's hoping her book makes into many hands and hearts and minds, on both sides of the pond.
Monday, February 28, 2011
'Ethical Oil'--Ezra Levant, Toronto Sun
Brief, and to the point.
Where did Moammar Gadhafi, the brutal dictator of Libya, get the money to pay the foreign mercenaries who are butchering his people? How did he pay for those French-made fighter jets strafing protesters?
Europe, mainly. Europe buys 80% of Libya’s oil. Other than terrorism, that’s pretty much the only thing Libya exports.
The rest is better...
HT Donald Sensing at Sense of Events.
Where did Moammar Gadhafi, the brutal dictator of Libya, get the money to pay the foreign mercenaries who are butchering his people? How did he pay for those French-made fighter jets strafing protesters?
Europe, mainly. Europe buys 80% of Libya’s oil. Other than terrorism, that’s pretty much the only thing Libya exports.
The rest is better...
HT Donald Sensing at Sense of Events.
On The One Hand, More Of The Same. On The Other, A Sane Proposal For Symphony Orchestras In The US
With the world seeming to burn down, it seems silly for OS to spend any energy on a seemingly minor subject.
Point taken. But, OS calls your attention to the masthead, his premise behind his scribbles.
It is important that this country have really good orchestras, operas, ballets, music schools, and the like. Music is important, and instrumental classical music is a big part of that.
The whole enterprise is on shaky ground these days, though. Many of the 'big' orchestras are running deficits, which cannot be sustained for the long term. Detroit has shut down, since the musicians decided to reject the latest offer. Louisville almost did, but the judge has demanded that management spend the endowment on the payroll. Good luck with that, ya'll. Charleston Symphony simply turned out the lights and shut the door last spring, and just restarted in December 2010.
Unionized orchestra musicians, like some others in the culture, have this unshakable belief that goes like this: I can do things like play the bassoon parts to all the Strauss tone-poems, perfectly, every time, come what may. I therefore should have a gig with an orchestra that will pay me a respectable income to do just that sort of thing. The orchestra gets its money from TheGreatMoneyTree, that endless flow of cash that emerges from the bottomless well of wealth in the government, and the other bottomless wells of wealth located in the corporate sector, and the concert-going public, who gratefully purchase tickets to hear me play the Strauss tone-poems. I have no other obligation to the city in which I live than to play my bassoon. The city is obliged to support me.
There was a day, say fifty years ago, when that model more-or-less held true.
It does not apply now.
This on musician troubles at the NYC Ballet:
Two performers' unions have teamed up to fight what they call "unacceptable labor relations policy" at the New York City Ballet.
The American Guild of Musical Artists and Local 802 of the American Federation of Musicians announced Thursday that their respective negotiating committees met on Jan. 24 to discuss ways to combat the ballet's "unacceptable approach to contract negotiations." AGMA represents dancers; Local 802 represents orchestra musicians. Members of both unions are working under contracts that expired in August.
In a joint statement, the unions said that they agreed to wage freezes last year "despite the fact that NYCB's fiscal problems seem to be caused by questionable artistic and administrative planning, by a development department that isn't raising enough money, and a publicity department that isn't selling enough tickets." The unions went on to call for a wage increase, describing a further freeze as "unacceptable" and saying that the two negotiating committees will meet again "to consider joint actions to compel City Ballet to address their respective members' needs in a more positive, acceptable manner."
Really, ya'll. Just can't make this stuff up. It's like we don't have a functional 20% unemployment rate, and management has its own Fed in the back office to go print it up sum moh' munny, hunny.
On the other hand, there is a voice of sanity out there, a most credible one at that:
Tony Woodcock, President of New England Conservatory.
Instead of over-specialization and the exclusive pursuit of perfection dictated by the demands of the recording industry, let us instead strive for excellence, a broader set of skills for our musicians, and a new responsibility by our musicians to the community. Instead of musical technicians, let us mold what the founder of “El Sistema” calls “apostles to society.” Let’s release our musicians’ creative potential in a directed and synergistic way for a whole community. Musicians are brilliant and wonderful people and can do anything; we need to trust their judgment and direction and creativity. Music schools have begun taking steps to prepare young musicians for such a future. Excellent musicianship continues, of course, to be a given and students graduate with ever more impressive chops.
I cannot think of another industry where there is no relationship between the employers and the trainers. For the future, this really needs to change and I believe the key words are “partnerships” and “collaborations”—orchestral partnerships with music schools, and orchestral collaborations within the community. To facilitate these, we need to tear up all those restrictive collective bargaining agreements and create a context of flexibility and trust. This has never previously been possible between musicians, management and boards, but the new model would not be based on confrontation and dysfunction. It would be about a shared vision, ownership, and musician empowerment. Orchestras could then focus upon community interaction with an educational bias. Musicians would have multiple functions and responsibilities, many of which would be self-managed and created in the community.
It's a great article, and deserves to be considered.
Point taken. But, OS calls your attention to the masthead, his premise behind his scribbles.
It is important that this country have really good orchestras, operas, ballets, music schools, and the like. Music is important, and instrumental classical music is a big part of that.
The whole enterprise is on shaky ground these days, though. Many of the 'big' orchestras are running deficits, which cannot be sustained for the long term. Detroit has shut down, since the musicians decided to reject the latest offer. Louisville almost did, but the judge has demanded that management spend the endowment on the payroll. Good luck with that, ya'll. Charleston Symphony simply turned out the lights and shut the door last spring, and just restarted in December 2010.
Unionized orchestra musicians, like some others in the culture, have this unshakable belief that goes like this: I can do things like play the bassoon parts to all the Strauss tone-poems, perfectly, every time, come what may. I therefore should have a gig with an orchestra that will pay me a respectable income to do just that sort of thing. The orchestra gets its money from TheGreatMoneyTree, that endless flow of cash that emerges from the bottomless well of wealth in the government, and the other bottomless wells of wealth located in the corporate sector, and the concert-going public, who gratefully purchase tickets to hear me play the Strauss tone-poems. I have no other obligation to the city in which I live than to play my bassoon. The city is obliged to support me.
There was a day, say fifty years ago, when that model more-or-less held true.
It does not apply now.
This on musician troubles at the NYC Ballet:
Two performers' unions have teamed up to fight what they call "unacceptable labor relations policy" at the New York City Ballet.
The American Guild of Musical Artists and Local 802 of the American Federation of Musicians announced Thursday that their respective negotiating committees met on Jan. 24 to discuss ways to combat the ballet's "unacceptable approach to contract negotiations." AGMA represents dancers; Local 802 represents orchestra musicians. Members of both unions are working under contracts that expired in August.
In a joint statement, the unions said that they agreed to wage freezes last year "despite the fact that NYCB's fiscal problems seem to be caused by questionable artistic and administrative planning, by a development department that isn't raising enough money, and a publicity department that isn't selling enough tickets." The unions went on to call for a wage increase, describing a further freeze as "unacceptable" and saying that the two negotiating committees will meet again "to consider joint actions to compel City Ballet to address their respective members' needs in a more positive, acceptable manner."
Really, ya'll. Just can't make this stuff up. It's like we don't have a functional 20% unemployment rate, and management has its own Fed in the back office to go print it up sum moh' munny, hunny.
On the other hand, there is a voice of sanity out there, a most credible one at that:
Tony Woodcock, President of New England Conservatory.
Instead of over-specialization and the exclusive pursuit of perfection dictated by the demands of the recording industry, let us instead strive for excellence, a broader set of skills for our musicians, and a new responsibility by our musicians to the community. Instead of musical technicians, let us mold what the founder of “El Sistema” calls “apostles to society.” Let’s release our musicians’ creative potential in a directed and synergistic way for a whole community. Musicians are brilliant and wonderful people and can do anything; we need to trust their judgment and direction and creativity. Music schools have begun taking steps to prepare young musicians for such a future. Excellent musicianship continues, of course, to be a given and students graduate with ever more impressive chops.
I cannot think of another industry where there is no relationship between the employers and the trainers. For the future, this really needs to change and I believe the key words are “partnerships” and “collaborations”—orchestral partnerships with music schools, and orchestral collaborations within the community. To facilitate these, we need to tear up all those restrictive collective bargaining agreements and create a context of flexibility and trust. This has never previously been possible between musicians, management and boards, but the new model would not be based on confrontation and dysfunction. It would be about a shared vision, ownership, and musician empowerment. Orchestras could then focus upon community interaction with an educational bias. Musicians would have multiple functions and responsibilities, many of which would be self-managed and created in the community.
It's a great article, and deserves to be considered.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Libya: Reports Of Mutinies Within Government Ranks
This website recently set up by someone sympathetic to the Libyan insurgents--no way of judging its veracity, however.
News has reached us via email that a security battalion commander in az Zawiya was killed by a soldier in the battalion. Soldiers refused orders to shoot and the commander was determined on the implementation of the orders of Khoweildy. One of the solders stepped forwards and rendered him dead with a bullet to the head. The soldier then said: It’s better that you die rather than the victims be tens of youth.
Again, no way of knowing the truth of the tale.
However, when a country ends up with 40+ years of dictatorial rule, sooner or later, it blows sky-high.
And then the darkness descends...
Just a note for future political leadership, when they decide to get in bed with characters like Gadafi, or Mubarak, or the Iranians, or the House of Saud.
News has reached us via email that a security battalion commander in az Zawiya was killed by a soldier in the battalion. Soldiers refused orders to shoot and the commander was determined on the implementation of the orders of Khoweildy. One of the solders stepped forwards and rendered him dead with a bullet to the head. The soldier then said: It’s better that you die rather than the victims be tens of youth.
Again, no way of knowing the truth of the tale.
However, when a country ends up with 40+ years of dictatorial rule, sooner or later, it blows sky-high.
And then the darkness descends...
Just a note for future political leadership, when they decide to get in bed with characters like Gadafi, or Mubarak, or the Iranians, or the House of Saud.
Just Because It's Friday: KJV Reading Of The Week
OK, OK, OK--it's Sunday. But OS was hip-deep in TheProjectThatWouldNotEnd, and Saturday was off for brunch with the Sainted Mrs. OS and golf. Moh' about that day later.
So for today, in honor of the 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible, a Pauline passage from Colossians--one of the defining statements his Christology:
Colossians, Chapter 2:
6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
So for today, in honor of the 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible, a Pauline passage from Colossians--one of the defining statements his Christology:
Colossians, Chapter 2:
6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
Gaddafi: Going Out In A Sea Of Blood, Which He Considers A Blaze Of Glory
The France 24 live blog link is here.
In the meantime, the fallout seems to be spreading from the North African meltdown, including the sudden resignation of the French foreign minister.
The British, with what remains of their military, demonstrated their grit and pluck by extracting 150 of their countrymen from the desert yesterday. Wonder if someone in London regrets decommissioning that aircraft carrier and abandoning all those Harriers yet?
The Canadians, on the other hand, sent a plane to the airport for their people, and took off with the plane still empty. Oh, Canada!
Gaddafi has taken a page from Castro's and Arafat's playbook: When the going gets tough, create chaos. A full-blown refugee crisis is in the making, food distribution is breaking down, and the harbor and airport are full of ships and planes trying to get their foreign nationals the hell out of Dodge City while they still can. Chaos provides cover if one is determined to win at all costs, or barring that, get out with one's skin and a few billion and the harem to keep one warm.
Also interesting to see just how many people, beginning with Chavez and Gordon Brown, have been in bed with this monster for how many years. More on that latuh, ya'll...
In the meantime, Gadafi's world seems to be getting smaller by the day.
However, he could still book it to the southern regions, with plenty of cash, arms and mercenaries, and create chaos as a warlord.
Now, OS will spend some time heading down Memory Lane this week, looking for all those 'statesmen' who condemned Reagan for sending the US Navy after this monster in the 80's. How many lives would have been saved, had our boys managed to knock him off?
In the meantime, the fallout seems to be spreading from the North African meltdown, including the sudden resignation of the French foreign minister.
The British, with what remains of their military, demonstrated their grit and pluck by extracting 150 of their countrymen from the desert yesterday. Wonder if someone in London regrets decommissioning that aircraft carrier and abandoning all those Harriers yet?
The Canadians, on the other hand, sent a plane to the airport for their people, and took off with the plane still empty. Oh, Canada!
Gaddafi has taken a page from Castro's and Arafat's playbook: When the going gets tough, create chaos. A full-blown refugee crisis is in the making, food distribution is breaking down, and the harbor and airport are full of ships and planes trying to get their foreign nationals the hell out of Dodge City while they still can. Chaos provides cover if one is determined to win at all costs, or barring that, get out with one's skin and a few billion and the harem to keep one warm.
Also interesting to see just how many people, beginning with Chavez and Gordon Brown, have been in bed with this monster for how many years. More on that latuh, ya'll...
In the meantime, Gadafi's world seems to be getting smaller by the day.
However, he could still book it to the southern regions, with plenty of cash, arms and mercenaries, and create chaos as a warlord.
Now, OS will spend some time heading down Memory Lane this week, looking for all those 'statesmen' who condemned Reagan for sending the US Navy after this monster in the 80's. How many lives would have been saved, had our boys managed to knock him off?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)