President Obama has been on the prowl telling the World that U.S. Combat Operations will end on August 31. I welcome that as I continue to be concerned that 50,000 US troops will continue to remain. I have also continued to be disturbed by reports by commentators like Tariq Ali who note that the U.S. will continue to have a long-lasting presence not withstanding what the Adminstration leads us to believe.
The cost continues to rise ever more. I am frankly numb at the monies spent in Iraq. The daily counter featured in "outsiders" signifies the continued spending being done with no apparent end in sight. Yet, Iraqis are lucky to get a few hours of electricity every day and even luckier if they have running water. I won't even begin to discuss the job prospects, the continued uncertainty in Kurdistan and the fact that there is not even a Government in place. As always, the Economist' Kal said it best:
When the Chief of Staff of the Iraqi Army notes that the Iraqi Army is not ready, it seems that the Adminstration must step up and take notice. When there is no Government, though, there is not much that can be done. The Iraqiya Group and the State of law group continue to bicker as the bombings and killings continue to go on. What was quite startling was how the story was quickly suppressed.
Moving on to Afghanistan, things continue to be in a state of flux. General Petraus has begun making the rounds making the case that the July 2011 withdrawal date is not practical. One of the "happy talk" we have been fed has been the rise of the Afghan National Army. On a campaign they apparently undertook north of Kabul, they got slammed to say the least. Nato and US troops had to rush in to bail them out. There is also the story of "New Ansari" that appeared in the New York Times this past week. New Ansari is basically a money dealer that was under investigation for money laundeering by agents trained by the United States. The problem was that it got too close to associates of Karzai and he ended up putting his own people in charge. One has to wonder with such friends, who really needs enemies.
The country and the World seems to be fed with the fiction that these two campaigns are ultimately winnable. With all the treasure and blood spent, it is a very big question mark especially as America has to deal with the day after when soldiers do come home.
The Past 24 hours has been quite exciting throughout the MIddle East. In Iran, the terrorist Rigi was executed. He was leading a Sunni Splinter group in Southern Iran who had used Pakistan's Baluchestan Region to launch raids into Iran and provide safe passage for drug runners who have used the nearly lawless Southern Iran for drugs coming through Afghanistan. There are some who may say that he was one of the brave ones who took on the regime in Iran because his group was behind the assassination of a number of Senior Revolutionary Guard Commanders . What his biggest crime was to perpetuate the regime because he played into the hands of the regime.
This is exactly the kind of fight that the current regime is vying for to rally the country. They have done it repeatedly throughout the last thirty years.
Iran and the World are continuing their cat and mouse game, too:
Moving on to Israel, it has been quite busy again. Although I welcome the annoucement of the easing of the Gaza blockade, the sea blockade will continue to remain in effect. I am certain that the Israeli Prime Minister wants a prize for doing what the World has been asking for the longest time. I am yet to figure out how it is that chocolate, shaving cream and textbooks are a security risk. But, I guess the folks running Israeli Government Policy are a lot smarter and see things the rest of us don't see. Not withstanding this "development", the fact still remains that Gaza will continue to remain the World's biggest prison. At least Egypt had the courage to open up the Rafah crossing indefinitely. As for the West Bank, supposedly there is freedom of movement. But this was debunked when Norm Chomsky was denied entry to Bethlehem to speak at Bir Zeit University. The Israeli Prime Minister talks a good talk about "two people/two states". Yet, the actions of the Israeli Government betrays this very vision.
Moving on to Iraq and Afghanistan, the wars rage on. They have termporarilyl dropped off the radar screen simply because the Gulf Tragedy continues to dominate--and rightly so. There was just some scant attention made to the Foreign Policy challenges the United States faces. But the challenges are real. The fight is real as this clip indicates and I reported on it earlier when commenting on the "Trillion Dollar Bet":
The Political Leaders continue to remind us that it will get worst before it gets better. The question is what is defined as better? What is victory? I have read the Obama National Security Strategy and view it as fundementally flawed because it continues to perpetuate a vision originally pushed by George W. Bush. The question is what will happen now.
Iraqis went to the Poll. There was violence and some 35 people lost their lives. But the insurgents did not succeed. The reports I have seen show that the elections went well, was well organized and reasonably fair. It shows that the people are speaking with one voice--the need to change. Now the real work begins.
Iraq is a country that is frankly broken in many ways. People can't find jobs. The infrastructure is non-existent. More importantly, the Political leadership is mostly interested in perpetuating its own power structure than actually working to overcome and rebuild. Yet, I believe that the Iraqi People must be congratulated to have turned out in such force to speak for change
As Iraq begins to vote, the insurgents have been quite busy. One of the most worrisome was an attack near the Imam Ali Shrine in Najaf. If any damage would have been done to the shrine, the implications would have been profound and who knows what would have happened.
As I await Iraq's vote, I was especially gratified to see the call by Moqtada Al Sadr for a large get-out-the vote effort. Sadr has been in Iran studying under the former Iranian Chief Justice to attain the title of Ayatollah. His news conference in Iran was a surprise. It was a welcome surprise. Grand Ayatollah Sistani's call is also a very welcome development indeed. More importantly, I regard the emergence of a third force in Kurdish politics to be even more significant. That's a development that should hopefully be a welcome development for the long-term development of Iraqi Democracy
Karzai the Fool showed his true colors. Over the last twenty four hours, what he has done is to issue a decree bringing the Electoral Commision of Afghanistan under his direct control. He would be appointing all members going forward. He may thought that he was taking the place of his mentor: Zahir Shah. My reaction to this was this: I TOLD YOU SO!!!!
The man is a useless idiot who is being propped up by over 100,000 NATO troops. He stole the election, he is corrupt and his outright power grab shows that he has no legitimacy. This is akin to the President of the United States issuing an Executive Order appointing the members of the Federal Elections Commision bypassing the U.S. Congress. This should not be allowed under any circumstances. What I fear is that he would get away with it as NATO troops and Afghan civilians continue to die
Saturday was my boy's 9th Birthday. I am forever grateful for the privilege of having known him and am proud to call him the "big little man". I have been forever grateful for the p the honor to be his Dad. As I saw him hanging out with his buddies for the day, I prayed that I would do everything in my power to make sure he grew up to be better, wiser and stronger than I. This is what Fathers live for. That's why I could not even imagine what this Father went through:
THE UN Fact finding mission has come out with its' report on the GAZA war. The conclusions are quite chilling. Judge Goldstone talks about it in this interview:
The Israeli PM is set to speak in a few hours to lay out his "vision" for Middle East Peace. I anxiously await his speech where he will lay out his vision for what he is going to do. He has already rejected a two-state solution. He wants to give them "economic freedom". I would like to see what that means and how that would translate into meaningful progress on the ground.
One thing I hope occurs is the Israel should continue on the path of progress. EU has already met with Hamas. George Mitchell saw Bashar-Al-Asad earlier. The road to Middle East Peace does go through Damascaus. Will it happen, though
Israel has just announced a strategic review of the regional peace process. The Foreign Minister has said that the intention is for Israel to seize the initiative. This statement, by itself, was quite surprisingly to me as I read it. The fact is that Israel has had the initiative all along. Therefore, the fact that somehow they are trying to seize the initiative again is a strange twist on this saga.
Barack Obama has invited the key leaders to Washington in a few months to ramp up the peace process. I remain hopeful that something good may yet come out of this. I was also heartened to see Omar Sulemyan, Egypt's Intelligence Chief, visit The Israeli Prime Minister. I was surprised by Lieberman's respect for both Egypt and the President of Egypt after the bellicose commments he had made earlier. But, the problem is that these are all words. If the Israeli leaders are courageous enough to go for a two state solution, stop the settements and temper the extremism on their side, it will literlly pull the rug from under the radicals who seem to hold sway with Palestinians right now
There has been enough said, written and talked about on the Iraq war. I have been continually worried about security, the economy and the long term viability of the country. I am not convinced of the emerging "happy talk" view of Iraq. I am more of the view that the worst is ahead of us. But the statistics below is a stark reminder of the cost to both the people of Iraq and the work:
Cost of The War: 656 Billion Dollars in Allocated Funds
Today is Easter. It is a day to celebrate and to remember. As all of us pray for those who are in harm's way, we ought to also remember those who did not live to see this blessed day. I especially am mindful of those who lost their lives in Italy during that terrible earthquake. I am also reminded of those who continue to lose their lives everyday to hunger and disease despite all the abundance in our world.
We must make a renewed committment to find hunger, disease, homelessness and injustice anywhere. We must work to embrace creativity and embrace the new while remembering the best of the old. I view this as a solemn responsbility especially for those who have the bullypulpit. As someone who has the privilege to teach and to write, I wanted to do my small part to live up to this committment. We have to continue to think about our future so that we can emerge stronger. It was in this spirit that I decided to launch Outsider Views and to take on moderating Kitten Politics here within the ever-growing Orble Community. It has been a journey that I will continue on. At times, I have felt that the struggle is a lonely one. But, the prospect of doing nothing is something that I refuse to do
Iran's Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) is reporting that Ali Larijani has arrived in the Holy City of Najaf on an unannouced visit. IRNA also reports that after visiting Imam Ali's Shrine, he is to hold talks with Grand Ayatollah Sistani. This is while some violence has yet again been reported. In addition, there is the agreement Ehud Barak has struck with The Israeli PM-Designate to retain his position as Defense Minister.
I find both developments quite signifcant. The fact that Larijani has gone to Najaf signifies Iran's growing influence and concern. I will be keen to see what Larijani will have to say once he either returns to Tehran or while in Iraq. I am sure that the trip was in the works for a while. As for Barak joining the government, that's also interesting. Supposedly, he has secured Bibi's committment to continue negotations with the Palestinians on a two-state solution and to abide by previous agreements. I hope that it is not mere lipservice, because Bibi did as much as anyone to destroy the spirit of Oslo and the impasse and misery so far in the occupied territories
Barack Hussein Obama is now the 44th President of the United States. Throughout my lifetime, I have had the privilege to read on the traditions and was finally able to be a true witness to this momentous transfer of power due to the power of technology. I have continued to marvel at how someone with so much power gives it up so willingly because the people are truly sovereign in America. This was quite moving when the President and the First Lady escorted Former Mr. and Mrs. Bush
Every day seems to be more exciting than the next. Earlier today, the U.S Embassy in Yemen was attacked. Al Jazeera right now is reporting that 16 people have died. At least, visa applicants had not lined up yet. Otherwise the the death toll would have been higher. On the business side, AIG was thrown a lifeline by the Federal Reserve. AIG was given a $ 85 BIllion Loan in exchange for a 79.9% stake in the business. This lifeline will allow AIG to continue to operate. There is also a claim by the Nigerian Delta Rebels of a oil pipeline being blown up in Nigeria.
The embassy attack is bothersome on several fronts. It shows that the fatalists within the Islamist movement seem to be as vibrant as ever. Yemen, of course, is not the safest country in the world. It has been a hotbead of insurrection for a very long time. The Yemeni Government has a lot of work to do. U.S. Embassies are fortified institutions. It will be quite tough to penetrate the compound itself. But, the brazen attack takes quite bit of planning which is worrisome
The Seven-Year Anniversary of 9/11 is before us. It is gratifying to see that the two leading U.S. Presidential Contenders will unite at the site of that terrible tragedy to remember. It changed lives and the world forever.
Al Qaeda, though, has been at it again. The terrorist Al Zahwari has headlined a video blasting Iran. Your text goes here It also dismissed Hezbollah's war against Israel. This is further proof that Al Qaeda 's supposed ties to Iran (something pushed by John McCain and his buddy Joe Lieberman) is pure fiction. The same peddlers of false history seem to forget that Iran almost went to war with the Taliban and Afghanistan because there is a fundemental disconnect and profound disagreement over the very nature of Islam that the Taliban and Al Qaeda espouse to
King Abdullah has gone to Iraq. This is important because he's the first Arab leader to have gone since the war. Al Jazeera is reporting that he got a nice gift: cheaper oil. Jordan has hosted quite a bit of Iraqi refugees. But, it has also benefited greatly. From the reports I have seen, they are enjoying quite a property boom. So, His Majesty will do what he has to do to maintain the economic and political stability of a country that is 70% Palestinian.
I have found him to be quite interesting and vibrant. I have periodically visited the Jordanian Monarchy Website. It seems that the people seem to genuinely hold the King in high esteem. But, Jordan is one of those countries that does practice "managed democracy", just like countries like Morocco. Al Jazeera was fined in Morocco not too long ago. So, this notion of Al Jazeera somehow being anti-american (the line that the Bush Adminstration tried to sell to the rest of us) is just nonesense. King Abdullah has his eye on the ball. with a very attractive family. IIn my view, Queen Raina, King Abdullah and Queen Noor (King Hussein's Wife) have worked dilligently to overcome the misconceptions that has been perpetuated by that lowlife Bin Laden and his followers. I call Bin Laden a lowlife simply because I have no other way to refer to him. I can't refer to him as an animal, because even animals have an honor code
Mike Pouraryan
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